Zimmerman Is The One In U.S. For A U.K. Giant

ATLANTA-With roots in the United Kingdom, QSP Financial Information Systems is seeking to grow its business in the U.S. via help from its newly appointed agency of record, The Zimmerman Group, a small shop in Durham, N.C. Sources estimated the budget at $1 million. Addie Kline, vice president of marketing for QSP Financial Information Systems’ American operations in Raleigh, N.C., was introduced to Zimmerman in August while consulting for a local software company. “I had gone through an agency review and I looked at five different agencies,” said Kline, who joined QSP in September. Rather than repeat the review process, Kline chose one of the contenders, The Zimmerman Group. (The other company in a review, Newtonian Software in Cary, N.C., has not yet selected an agency, according to Kline.) Kline said she appreciated The Zimmerman Group’s ability to maximize a budget. In addition, Kline was familiar with the agency’s creative director, Cheryl Case, whom she had worked with in a previous client-agency relationship, and copywriter Josh Fraimow. “They’re quite a creative team,” said Kline. The Zimmerman Group’s charge is to plan and execute marketing programs that will drive awareness and sales leads among U.S. businesses. Along with horizontal marketing to achieve cross-industry awareness, QSP Financial Information Systems will target vertical markets such as the airline industry, Kline said. Print advertising, direct mail and trade show components will likely be used in the programs. “[QSP] is well known and regarded No. 1 in the U.K,” Kline said, adding that the firm has sales of $50 million. “The company is looking for strong growth to move to the next level.” Founded in 1989, the agency has doubled its operation in the past two years, according to president Ellen Zimmerman. “A lot of our growth is because we’ve beefed up our creative department,” she said. The agency has 14 staffers and bills $5 million from clients such as DuPont, Glaxo Wellcome, Internet service provider Interpath and computer systems integrator Strategic Technologies.